Hypothermia, i.e., a controlled lowering of the temperature of portions of the body, can be used to provide some therapeutic advantages. Thus, it may be intentionally induced as therapeutic hypothermia in certain procedures. For example, in the medical community, hypothermia is considered as an accepted neuroprotectant during cardiovascular surgery. Hypothermia is also sometimes induced as a neuroprotectant during neurosurgery. Therapeutic hypothermia can be used beneficially to prevent or reduce the effect of tissue damage from ischemic injuries and other injuries. For example, tissue damage that follows ischemic injuries can begin at the onset of ischemia and continue throughout the reperfusion phase after blood flow is restored. Both preclinical and clinical studies support the observation that the reperfusion phase can last from hours to days, and that therapeutic hypothermia can be used beneficially to block much of the injury in that phase.